Walk On Half A Road: Neji Hyuuga
by HarrietPhillips
Summary: Yuriko is th daughter of a great cloud ninja, but he was killed by the Hyuuga clan when trying to kidnap Hinata, her mother lied to her, and now its the chuunin exams and Yuriko is going to seek revenge, but will she find the truth before she kills Neji?


_**Part 1**_

I pulled the bed covers over my head as my mother opened my bedroom curtains allowing the 'lovely' morning sun burn my eyes. I'm sure the sun is brightest in the mornings, why else could it hurt so much?

'Come on Yuriko, it's time to get up, it's a beautiful day and you still haven't packed for this afternoon. Where is it you're having the exams this year? I hope it's nice, I don't want my Yuriko spending almost a month living at a tacky hotel in a dump.' I never understood why my mum spoke so much when I didn't want her too.

'We're going to Konoha, okay? Now please let me sleep!' I pulled the covers back over my head, making myself look like some sort of lumpy mess on the bed.

'Konoha? Well you better start packing! You have a long journey ahead of you!' My mum threw my covers off me making me shiver and roll off the bed.

'Come on, get changed! You only have a few hours before you have to leave, and I'm not having you leave on an empty stomach, how about cereal, toast, bacon, mashed potatoes and a carton of orange juice, yeh that'll be good.' Wow my mum was acting weird today, yeh I'm pissed off at having to go to that place, seriously who would want to go there, especially for a chuunin exam. Last time members of our village went over there my father died, and that's scaring enough as it is, but I swear, if I see even a single member of the Hyuuga clan I will rip them limb from limb.

After I got changed and made myself look decent, I went into the kitchen where my mum had left what seemed to be a three course meal all on one plate. Maybe I have a small stomach, but I can't cope with chicken, potatoes, cereal, toast, pineapple, ramen, apples and sushi at 8:30 in the morning, so I grabbed an apple throwing it in my bag and ate the sushi, the rest of the food I gave to my neighbour's cat, that cat could eat 7 times its own weight, which was pretty big, as in if a kitten ate Godzilla times 17.

'Mum! I going out to see Emiko and Kohei, okay?'

'Have you finished packing? Remember you're leaving this afternoon, and your uncle wants to see you' Mum shouted from upstairs.

'I haven't finished, but it won't take me a minute, I'm just checking what we need.'

'Well okay, but don't be long, I want to make sure you have everything.'

Leaving the house and walking through Kumogakure, I started thinking, I was going to Konoha, the one place I never wanted to go in the whole world, the country where the so called 'blessed clan' brutally killed my father who was travelling for peace. I was going there for a chuunin exam, I was going there to fight, if I'm against a Hyuuga, I will have to be prepared and find out how strong they really are for myself.

'Kohei! Give that back! It's mine!' Oh dear, what has Kohei done now,

'No! hehe you'll never get him back! He'll be mine for all eternity! You can chase me for ever and you will never catch him, and there's nothing you can do ab…' I heard a loud thump and turned the corner to find Kohei laying face down on the floor with his arms spread out. Emiko, another member of my team walked up to him and took back the oh so precious bunny he had stolen, before kicking him in a very uncomfortable place.

'That's what you deserve for not looking where you were going. Oh, hi Yuriko, have you got all your things ready for this afternoon?' Emiko said with a smile, looking oh so innocent in her dress with various ribbons sewn on to it.

'Not yet, I have most of it, but I don't know what we'll need to bring, I mean, where are we staying, will we need towels or what? Sensei should really make things clear to us.' Typical Akio sensei, rambles on about the unimportant things and never tells us what we actually need to know.

'Well, how about I bring a towel, and if we need one you can borrow mine? And I'm sure Kohei doesn't mind using girls towels.' Kohei popped his head out of the dirt like an ostrich and looked at Emiko,

'What? I can't use girls towels, I'm a man! A manly man, the manliest man you've ever seen, the alpha male, the king of the jungle!' Kohei stood posing with his hands on his waist and puffing out his chest trying to make himself look stronger, but instead made him look like some sort of rooster.

'Come on Kohei, we all know you like girls towels, remember at my tenth birthday? You walked around with it saying it felt good against your skin, how did you put it?'

'Like a mixture of sakura petals and puppy dog ears!' Me and Emiko said simultaneously, making Kohei blush almost as pink as the towels he loved so much.

'Why was I put in a team of girls?' Kohei looked up to the sky as if he was expecting words to appear saying he wasn't really.

'Because your so adorable snuckems!' I grabbed Kohei's cheek like a grandma usually does,

'Thank you, I do look after…hey!' Me and Emiko started giggling at him and his face now turned into what looked like a beetroot.

'Please can we change the subject now?' Kohei was practically going to die if we didn't stop this public humiliation we loved causing him.

'Yuriko! Over here!' I turned around and saw my uncle on the balcony outside his shop beckoning for us to come over.

My uncle was the father figure in my life since my father died, he has always been there for me through thick and thin and has always been there whenever I needed a friendly word. Uncle Masaru had a very important job in the village, he made and sold weapons, everything from kunai and shuurikan to more advanced weapons, each was unique and some had abilities even the owner didn't know about.

Emiko, Kohei and I went over to my uncle's shop where he allowed us into his back room, it was amazing, filled with ancient weapons and scrolls that looked as if they had never been used.

'Look at you, seems like yesterday you three became academy students, now look at you, going for your chuunin exam. Now, I don't know about you, but I think your weapons could do with a bit of an upgrade.' Masaru looked at our pouches before reaching into a large chest in the corner of the room. He took out what seemed to be a wooden ruler and circled us on by one, he first approached Kohei, holding up his arms before measuring and prodding them, he did this to various parts of everyone's body to find where our strong and weak parts are.

'Okay everyone, there's just one last thing I'd like you to try, follow me.' We followed him down some stairs into a room with a window looking through to a larger one with several dummies. 'Yuriko, you don't have to do this, I already know yours, Kohei, if you could please go through that door to the training area and I'll give you instructions from there.' Kohei did what he was told and left the room, soon to reappear in the larger room.

'Kohei, now all I want you to do is do the attack you most rely on in battle.' Kouhei nodded back to my uncle and closed his eyes, we all gathered around the window to watch.

Kouhi gathered all his chakra, and soon the room filled with a smoky fog, we heard a loud crash and soon the clouds cleared and all the dummies had large burnt holes through them, and some where even destroyed. Kohei had created the fog to blind the enemy, before using his lightning element to strike them. This was his popular jutsu and he uses it often in serious battles. My uncle seemed impressed by Kohei's efforts, but didn't stand around to complement, instead he sent Emiko into the room after him.

Emiko's challenge was she had to dodge various weapons that shot out of the walls, and she did so very successfully for her age, I'm sure she will be a brilliant medical nin when she is older and had more training. Emiko already knows the basic medical jutsu, but she takes pride in her almost cat like reactions.

'Weapons are more than just objects, it's not just a case of making them and giving them to the first person who walks through the door, that's what separates us from other villages. Weapons are like people, they only get along with certain people, and if they don't like you, they will fail. That's why I've been testing you, and now I've found the perfect weapons for each of you.' Masaru was very wise for his age and took great pride in his work. He reached into a cupboard before coming out with several kunai and shuuriken with special markings on each, 'Kohei, you are a great ninja and have wonderful control over your element, but your aim is poor, and you are likely to miss moving enemies, that's why I'm giving you these, if thy catch some of the enemies blood, or any kind of DNA for that matter, once you use that technique of yours, the lightning should automatically be drawn to that point.' Kohei stepped forward to retrieve his gift, before thanking the man and placing his new weapons in a separate pouch with a very pleased look on his face.

'Emiko, your medical techniques are brilliant for your age, but it is a well known fact, that medical ninja's need to dodge attacks, because after all, if they get injured, who will heal the rest of the team, that's why I'm giving you these.' He reached into his bag and brought out three large ribbons,

'What are these for?' Emiko held what looked to be ordinary bows in her hands,

'Once you untie them, they turn into steel and can block attacks very easily.' Emiko loved her gift and attached the ribbons to her outfit and one in her hair, so they blend in with her normal attire.

'Emiko, Kohei, do you mind leaving me and Yuriko alone for a while?' Emiko obeyed Masaru and waited outside the shop with Kohei while playing with their new toys.

'Yuriko, a long time ago, before your father left for Konoha, him and I used to spend hours together in here, designing new weapons and then your father would use some of them while out on missions. People used to call us the Defence Duo. Anyway, the point is, w designed and made this weapon together, it's one of our best, but unfortunately your father never had a chance to use it, and, well I think he would like you to have it.' The man walked into the backroom and after hearing what sounds like 50 bolts being unlocked he cam out with what seemed to be a giant spinning top attached to his back with several kunai attached to its surface. He took the strange object off his back and explained to me how it all worked before attaching it to my back and fastening the strap across my front. By the time I had left, so had Kohei and Emiko, leaving a note saying 'Gone Packing!' with a small smiley doodle at the bottom.

'Yuriko! Where have you been? What on earth is that on your back? Did Masaru give that to you? No time for questions, just finish packing, you have half an hour before you have to meet up with Akio sensei, it's not fare you keeping him waiting, believe it or not when he's not around you and your team he's calm and collected, but something about you three make him so paranoid.' He wasn't the only one, today my mum is really worrying me, anyway I had not time to talk, I had packing to do.

'Done!' I'd finally finished my packing, and with 20 minutes to spare, I was feeling pretty proud of myself, until I turned around and remembered I still had to pack my casual clothes, I could've died, I had one inch of my bag spare and had a whole outfit to fit in, this'll be a lot of work.

'Mummy! I've finished packing!' I ran into the front room where I saw my mummy sewing in her bed.

'Oh well done sweet heart.' She beckoned for me to sit with her on her bed before searching in her bag. She pulled out a beautiful yellow ribbon, she loved making ribbons.

'I made this for your chuunin exam, it'll bring you luck. But remember, be carefull, you can always take the exam another time, don't feel like this is your only chance.' She attached the ribbon to one of my sleeves and gave me a kiss on the forehead, 'Promise you'll be careful?' she held my hand tightly

'I promise, and you take care of yourself, nee-san says he'll come and look after you while I'm away, and Mummy, I will pass.' I held her hand tightly before leaving the house to meet Kohei and Yuriko for the exams.

'Dad! I'm leaving now!' I grabbed my cow bag pack and threw it over my shoulder before going into the lounge to say goodbye to my father, I walked up to his desk where he was sat filling in various documents for work. 'Dad, I'm leaving for my chuunin exam.' This time he heard, but paid little attention. I expected a small kiss, a hug or something before I left, but he showed little care as usual.

'Oh, okay, good luck.' He signalled for me to leave before carrying on with his work. I then left the house, only leaving behind a smile, 'Bye, Daddy.'

'Hi guys! are you ready to set off?' I asked Emiko and Kohei who were stood by the gates of the village, Kohei was wearing his new back pack, unlike normal ones, it looked like a cow, including the udders.

'Yeh, we're ready, we're just waiting for Akio sensei to arrive.' Emiko said while making final checks through her bag pack.

'He needs to collect the permission slips to get into Konoha from the Kage.' Kohei and I both looked at the large building that was used by the kage, before turning around to find Akio standing directly in front of us.

'Hello children! How are you? Good? I like feeling good, good is good, I have cupcakes for everyone later!' ahh typical sensei, worrying about us all the time. He's a nice man, but I honestly think that the kage's idea of letting him teach wasn't a good one, he's a great ninja, and apparently is very calm normally, but when teaching us, he is a bit,well, strange.

'Here are your passes, take care of them, you'll need them to get into Konoha.' He gave us each a slip and we left for Konoha.

The journey was long and we had to take shelter for a few hours due to rain, but we eventually arrived at the village. The entrance to the village was very grand and there were several guard towers surrounding the walls of the village.

Once we entered the village, because we were not members of Konoha, we had to hand our slips to two jounins at the village entrance; they took down our names and details before giving us new forms to carry around with us.

'Here, it's best you keep these with you at all times, even though it's the chuunin exams and we've allowed you through the gates, some people need proof that you have permission. Security in the village is really tight during the exams, we don't want any problems.' The two odd looking jounin put our slips into a file and let us free to roam around the village.

'Sensei? Is it okay if we go to that noodle bar for a while? I'm really hungry and I think Kohei's drooling' Emiko pointed to a nearby noodle bar named 'Ichiraku Ramen Bar' I heard that their food was delicious, and even though it was in Konoha, I'm sure the food will be edible. We entered the bar and took three seats,

'I'll go and find somewhere for us to stay, a nice place with silk sheets! We'll be alright!' Akio sensei left leaving only us and 3 others at the bar.

'So Sasuke, are you looking forward to the exams? I am, I'm sure you'll be amazing! You'll come out top of everyone, I'm sure of it.' The pink haired girl obviously had a thing for this boy, even though he seemed as if he had better things on his mind, their companion however looked as if he had just died of depression, I can't blame him though, not only is he with two love birds, well a love bird and a mute, but wearing bright orange? I bet someone dared him too or something, he soon cheered up though once the girl served him some ramen, at least I think that's what that blur was, he must have been hungry to eat that fast.

'So Sakura, how would you like to go for some ice-cream later?' Ahh, a love triangle! I see where this is going!

'Shut up Naruto! Can't you see I'm busy!' The girl, obviously named Sakura, pummelled Naruto to the ground, before giving eye's to Sasuke.

'Haven't you noticed there's 3 Kumogakure ninja's here? Sakura I'm surprised, you have the sharpest eye here Sakura.' The boy speaks! Wow, this must be a rarity.

'Oh, yes, of course.' The girl blushed, obviously lying and trying to impress her crush.

'What are you doing here?' The boy took his hands away from his face and glared at us. I took the bowl of ramen from the man at the bar and turned to the ninja's,

'We're here for the chuunin exams, and from what you've been saying, you're in them too, right? To be honest I thought it would be obvious, and if not, you're clearly not as amazing as Sakura thinks you are.' I was pretty proud of my speech there, certainly put them in their place, I think,

'What?! Sasuke is a great ninja, he could kick your as anyday! You think you an just walk into our village and insult us! Who do you think you are?!' The girl had now stood up and started making a scene, causing people to stop in their paths and stare at the drama in the noodle bar.

'Sakura calm down, you're giving me a headache, they'll be time for fighting later.' Sasuke obviously seemed to have problems, he showed no emotion, he thought he was so much better than everyone else and hardly cared about other peoples feelings. I honestly don't see what the girls see in him, unless thy like being treated like rubbish.

We ignored the 3 ninja for the rest of our meal and left just in time to see Akito looking at a bookshop along with another man wearing a mask that covered most of his face, they obviously were getting along quite well and had seemed to have similar tastes in books. We saw the masked man take a book out of his pocket and show it to sensei,

'Oh wow! I had no idea the new volume had come out! Where did you get it?' sensei seemed excited about this book, we didn't even know he read,

'Ah, well, I'm friends with the writer and he sometimes lets me read his books before they're released.' He replaced the book back into his pocket

'You know Jiraiya! That's amazing! Do you think I could meet him?' I don't know who this Jiraiya is, but Akito was possibly his biggest fan by he way he was reacting,

'I'll see what I can do, anyway I better get the rest of the team together, after all, the chunin exams start tomorrow.' The masked man walked away only to be stopped in his path by what can only be described as a walking peace of sea weed with a bad haircut.

'Kakashi! My arch rival for all eternity, I challenge you to a fight, a battle of wits and physical strength.'

'Not now Gai.' Kakashi brushed him off and carried on walking. Gai, the piece of seaweed kept pestering Kakashi until he gave in and accepted the challenge, this never happened. After a while 3 other ninjas appeared behind him, they looked about our age. One looked exactly like Gai except smaller, maybe they're related, the second was a girl, she wore her hair in bunches and carried with her some scrolls, and the other, the other member of the team had long brown hair tied in a loose ponytail down his back, he wore a long white jacket, and his eyes, his eyes were those of the Hyuuga clan.

NEXT CHAPTER COMING OUT SOON!


End file.
